Branson offers up some great '80s TV-related toys

This author's friend Patrick Shawn Bennett, creator, along with Lisa Everetts, of the Pop Ninja podcast you've seen highlighted on this very blog, took a trip to Branson, Missouri, during the holidays and saw all kinds of '80s goodies (we bet it will lead to material on the '80s-themed podcast!) and a lot of it was related to the TV shows we know and love from that era and beyond. He shares these cool photos with us -- thanks, Patrick! He visited the toy store "80s World" that you see pictured first below, and a Hollywood wax museum (the "Star Trek" transporter room, with one photo of Patrick himself!), and a toy museum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are a few items shown above that you have seen on the Terrific TV Toys series, and there's one particular item (a set, if that's a clue) that you will see on an upcoming episode!

 

On New Year's Day, Patrick was at Cooter's Garage in Nashville, and he snapped this photo for us while he was standing at the register. Thanks so much, Patrick, and thanks, Cooter's, for continuing to carry "Them Dukes! Them Dukes!" along with these other great "Dukes" books. This author really appreciates it.

 

 

 

Photos by Patrick Shawn Bennett; please do not copy without permission.

Canadian artist Jim Wilson crafts Mr. Dressup's treehouse for a good friend

For any of the Canadian readers out there (like you, Wendy! :) ), you might have grown up with "Mr. Dressup," a Canadian children's television series that originally ran on CBC from 1967 to 1996. As Mr. Dressup, actor Ernie Coombs would lead children through a series of songs, stories, arts, crafts and imagination games, with the help of his puppet friends Casey and Finnegan, Wikipedia says. This author's good friend Jim Wilson of Canada, whose fine art you've seen on this blog before -- art of "The Dukes of Hazzard," "Green Hornet" and more -- has now turned his creative eye to the beloved TV icon of his youth. He has crafted a replica of the treehouse featured on "Mr. Dressup" for his friend, Rob. 

This is the treehouse where those puppets Casey and Finnegan lived, on the show. How fun! If you're sensing some "Mr. Rogers" vibes, those of you in the U.S., it might be because Coombs and Fred Rogers once knew each other as colleagues, and yes, they took very similar career paths.

Here's the real thing as seen on the show:

And here are shots of Jim's work on the replica:

 

 

Thanks, Jim, for sharing these photos with us! And congratulations, Rob (that's him below), on a one-of-a-kind piece! By the way, be sure to like Jim's new Facebook page to see more of his work!

 

Photos courtesy of Jim Wilson; please do not copy without permission.

Terrific TV Toys: Curious George plush by Gund, 1990s

Let's start out the new year on a bright note, for the series! What can be brighter than the adorable Curious George and his pal the Man With the Yellow Hat? That little monkey loves to get into trouble, and did you know he's a world traveler? Well, find out more in this week's episode, examining a plush toy from Gund that was purchased new in the 1990s ... 

A channel showing just "Three's Company" 'round the clock? How can that be?

Yea, that's what this author thought, when her pal Brian gave her the heads-up on Pluto TV, which, truth be told, I'd heard of but just hadn't really watched. Maybe I even added the app to my Amazon Firestick. But nonetheless, now I have checked it out more fully, and it is a veritable smorgasbord where classic television is concerned. "Happy Days," "The Love Boat," "Family Ties," "One Day at a Time" ... too many to mention, really. Even the "Dark Shadows" episodes I've been watching on Tubi! Just oodles of classic TV shows there at your fingertips, 24-7, and free! No subscriptions! You can watch on your laptop, phone or tablet. So crazy. Somebody get these guys some revenue, because we don't want this to stop!!! Gives a whole new mechanism for binge-watching, for sure. (Oh, and there are movies there, too, along with documentaries, reality TV, and other assorted goodies.)

Happy new year! Here's your updated episode guide for the two BRBTV collectibles series

Congratulations! If you're reading this, you just survived a difficult year. And it's all about survival, right? Time marches on here at BRBTV, thank the Lord, and the two collectibles series on YouTube, Terrific TV Toys and Terrific non-TV Toys, have marched on, as well. As is our custom, we present the updated episode guide for the two series, as we look forward to highlighting many more great toys in the 2021. We've got a packed schedule! And the plan is to continue one episode per month for each series on the BRBTV YouTube channel. Until then, here's your recap ...

Terrific TV Toys

Season 7

150. Batgirl figures from "DC Super Hero Girls," Part 1 

151. Batgirl figures from "DC Super Hero Girls," Part 2 

152. "DC Super Hero Girls" book and Pez 

153. Wonder Woman Hallmark ornament, 2020 

154. Scooby-Doo playsets by Playmobil, Part 1: Mystery Machine 

155. Scooby-Doo playsets by Playmobil, Part 2: Mystery Machine cont'd, plus Scooby and Shaggy

 
Season 6
Season 5
Season 4
Season 3
Season 1 and 2  

Terrific non-TV Toys

Season 3

25. Batman Black and White blind bags, Series 1-3 

Backlog of Batgirls Series:

26. Batgirl "DC Bombshells" statue 

27. Batgirl DC Core statue 

28. Batgirl on scooter, DC Artists Alley series, 2019 

29. Batgirl figure by Funko / 5 Star, 2018 

30. Batgirl and Donatello from DC Collectibles, 2020 

31. Batgirl Multiverse figure by McFarlane Toys, 2020

Season 2

Season 1

May 2021 be blessed for you and your family!

It's collage time again! How about a few Angels and some "Trek" ...

"A few angels in your corner is always a plus," says C.J., whose creative collages you have seen on this blog. How about a few more? This time we'll start with the lovely ladies of "Charlie's Angels" then go into more and more original "Star Trek"! Thanks again, C.J.

 

 

(These images are arranged in a certain order -- did you catch on yet?)

In case you didn't notice, each one of these collages is a spotlight on a particular "Trek" episode, and they're arranged in alphabetical order by title (including the "The" at the beginning of the title, if there was one!)

Yes, as with the other collages by C.J. posted on this blog, you are free to copy and share!

 

Images courtesy of and crafted by C.J.

Terrific non-TV Toys: Batgirl Multiverse figure by McFarlane Toys, 2020

We're rounding out the year here at the BRBTV collectibles series, Terrific TV Toys and Terrific non-TV Toys. Earlier this month you saw a two-parter on the Playmobil "Scooby-Doo" playsets of  the Mystery Machine and Shaggy and Scooby figure set. Now, we turn our attention (back) to the Backlog of Batgirls, and we're just not done yet! We're trying to be done with this looooooonnnnngggg series, but they've been multiplying since we began. That's a great thing, yes, just a bit tough to get caught up!

This may be the first appearance of McFarlane Toys on the BRBTV series. The brainchild of Todd McFarlane, who made a name for himself in the comic book industry at a young age in the '80s, this toy line has been known by collectors over the years as being highly detailed. McFarlane has taken on quite a few licenses for its toys over the years, beyond the Spawn figures that really caught people's attention. "Game of Thrones," "Harry Potter," to name a couple other biggies. But this year, amid the pandemic, McFarlane released a line of Batman-themed figures in a line called the Multiverse. This Batgirl figure was nabbed at Target as part of that series.

Stay tuned, because we've got great stuff planned for the new year. We've got just one last installment of the Backlog of Batgirls, then there shall be no more Batgirl or Batman on the series for the rest of 2021, as we turn instead to a very diverse assortment of other great collectibles!